Television system

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to the provision of data to a viewer of a television system. In particular the information is provided in a visual and/or audible indication to the viewer of a selected program as to when the next program in that program series is scheduled to be shown. The identity and schedule data is retrieved from data received relating to the generation of an EPG or alternatively from the data broadcast along with the selected program being viewed.

[0001] This invention relates to a television system including at leasta display screen provided with, or connected to, a broadcast datareceiver. The broadcast data receiver (BDR) receives and processesvideo, audio and/or auxiliary data generated by a broadcaster from aremote location, to a plurality of said BDR's.

[0002] Conventionally, at least some of the video data processed by theBDR relates to television or radio programmes being shown on particularchannels. An electronic or interactive programme guide (EPG) display isselectively generated on the display screen using auxiliary dataprocessed by the BDR. The EPG provides programme schedules and listingsfor a particular period of time for the available channels. EPGs arebecoming increasingly useful in place of conventional newspaper ormagazine based television listings as the number of available channelson digital television increases and thus the number of programmesavailable for viewing also increases.

[0003] In use, when a viewer is watching a particular programme which isone of a larger series of related programmes, the viewer may wish toknow when the next episode of the programme is due to be shown. However,even though the EPG display is available, as a result of the largenumber of programmes available for selection for viewing, even if theviewer uses the EPG to look for the time of the next episode in theseries, it typically takes the viewer some time to identify the nextepisode.

[0004] In addition, the same programme is often repeated a number oftimes and it is again time consuming for the viewer to look through theEPG or other TV listings to identify which of the next showings of theirselected programme are repeats of previous episode that they havealready watched and which are the showings of the next episode of theprogramme series that they have just watched. Thus the viewer may end upwatching a repeat of an earlier episode, miss the next episode and/orthe like. In some cases the television presenter may announce at the endof the programme when the next episode of the programme is to be shownbut in many cases this does not occur. Furthermore, if the programme aviewer has just watched is a repeat of an earlier showing, theannouncement at the end of the programme may be pre-recorded andtherefore out of date.

[0005] It is therefore an aim of the present invention to provide ameans of allowing a user to quickly and easily determine when theshowing of the next episode of a programme is scheduled and/or thechannel location of the same.

[0006] According to a first aspect of the present invention there isprovided a television system including a broadcast data receiver (BDR)for receiving broadcast digital data in the form of audio, video and/orauxiliary data from a remote broadcaster and processing said data toallow video and text to be viewed on a display screen connected to theBDR, said video and text including details of programmes available forselection by a viewer and characterised in that when a programme whichis selected for viewing is part of a series of programmes, at apredetermined time point during or at the end of the selected programme,an indication is generated by the BDR to inform the viewer of detailsthe scheduled display of next episode of the said series of programmes.

[0007] Preferably the indication of when the next episode is being shownis based on information provided in an electronic programme guide (EPG)display on the display screen.

[0008] In one embodiment the indication is generated when the BDRdetects the end of the selected programme and, the BDR searches or hasalready searched through EPG data in the BDR and identifies thescheduled showing of next episode of the programme series. The BDR thengenerates the indication, to indicate, typically in text, but alsopossibly audibly, to the viewer the time, date and channel location forthe viewing of the next programme in the series.

[0009] In an alternative embodiment, data relating to the scheduledshowing of the next episode of the programme series is broadcast by thebroadcaster in conjunction with the data stream for the selectedprogramme whereupon an indication is generated at the end of theprogramme by the BDR in respnse to the received data.

[0010] The EPG is typically generated from auxiliary data broadcast froma broadcaster.

[0011] Preferably the indication can include any or any combination ofthe date when the next episode is to be shown, the time at which thenext episode is to be shown, the channel on which the next episode is tobe shown, a description of the content of the next episode and/or thelike.

[0012] If the next episode is to be repeated a number of times over atime period, the indication can include details of all showings of thenext episode, the earliest showing of the next episode and/or the like.

[0013] Preferably the indication includes details of the showing of thenext episode of the programme which does not overlap with any otherbookmarked programmes previously selected by the viewer and stored inthe EPG.

[0014] In one embodiment the indication is in the form of a messagedisplayed on the display screen, and overlaid on the video datadisplayed at that time.

[0015] Further preferably the message is provided on a semi-transparentbackground at an edge of the display screen to prevent obstruction ofthe video being shown on the display screen.

[0016] Preferably, on display of the message on the display screen, theviewer has the option of hiding the message by using an appropriatecontrol key on control means provided.

[0017] In an alternative embodiment the indication is in the form of anaudio message generated automatically by the BDR via speakers connectedthereto and, from information based on EPG data.

[0018] Preferably once the viewer has listened to or has viewed theindication, the viewer can set a reminder so that the BDR informs themwhen the next episode is to be shown at a time nearer the scheduledshowing of the next episode. This is typically performed by depressionof one or more keys on control means, such as a remote control devicefor use with the television system.

[0019] Further preferably a user can recall the message providingdetails of the next episode prior to the scheduled showing of theepisode by depression of a pre-selected key on the control means.

[0020] Preferably the indication which is generated is displayed for aperiod of time determined by the user and/or broadcaster.

[0021] Preferably the user is provided with an option of switching thenext episode indication service on or off.

[0022] In one embodiment the indication also includes informationrelating to when a repeat of the programme just viewed is to be shown.

[0023] According to a second aspect of the present invention there isprovided a method of indicating to a viewer when the scheduled showingof the next episode or episodes in a series of television programmesis/are to occur on a television system, said television system includinga BDR for receiving broadcast digital data in the form of audio, videoand/or auxiliary data from a remote broadcaster and processing said datafor viewing on a display screen and/or listening via speakers connectedto the BDR, characterised in that said method includes the steps of theBDR identifying whether a series of programmes exist for a programmeselected for viewing on the system, the BDR searching received scheduledata for the next episode in the selected programme series and, if anepisode is identified the BDR then generates an indication to inform theviewer of when the next episode of the programme is to be shown.

[0024] The present invention has the advantage that the user can quicklyand easily determine when the next episode of a particular programmeseries is to be shown, without having to manually look throughtelevision schedules/listings to obtain the information.

[0025] An embodiment of the present invention will now be described withreference to the following figure:

[0026]FIG. 1 is an example of a television system according to anembodiment of the present invention;

[0027]FIG. 2 illustrates the television system in use in accordance withthe invention; and

[0028]FIG. 3 illustrates one display generated in accordance with theinvention.

[0029] Referring to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a television systemincluding a display screen 2 connected to a broadcast data receiver 4.The television system has an electronic programme guide (EPG) 8 whichdisplays television programme listings and/or schedules for a particulartime period, 10.

[0030] In accordance with the invention, if a viewer is watching aprogramme which is part of a television programme series of relatedprogrammes, a display 6 as shown in FIG. 2, is generated by the BDR. Thedisplay contains a message on the display screen at the end of theselected programme being viewed, informing the viewer of the date andtime of when the next episode of the series is to be shown and thechannel on which the next programme is to be shown.

[0031] In addition, a brief description of what is being shown in thenext episode of the programme can also be provided in the display.

[0032] The display, in this embodiment, is semi-transparent and appearsat the edge of display screen 2 so that it does not obstruct theviewer's vision of the video being shown on the display screen. However,the viewer can change the position of the window 6 if required.

[0033] The window typically appears on the display screen for a shortperiod of time, such as 10 seconds.

[0034] The viewer can hide the indication if required or select anoption from an options menu in the EPG to switch the indication off.Typically the viewer can also select the details provided in thereminder message using the options menu. For example, the viewer canchoose whether to be provided with a brief description of what the nextepisode is about. This allows the viewer to decide whether to set areminder to be informed nearer the time of the next episode that theprogramme is about to start or has started.

[0035] The viewer typically uses a remote control device to selectoptions such as, to hide the indication display; set a reminder in theEPG to be informed of the next showing of the episode and/or displaydetails of the times, channels and dates of all the showings of the nextprogramme episode.

[0036] In a practical example, if a viewer is watching a selectedprogramme titled “Horizon” on BBC Knowledge, then towards the end of theprogramme the BDR searches through received programme schedule data. Inone embodiment the received data for the selected programme indicatesthat it is part of a series and when the next programme is scheduled tobe shown. From that data the BDR can display a message as described.Alternatively the BDR can identify the selected programme and searchthrough the received EPG data to identify the same programme title andwhen it is next due to be viewed. In either embodiment, if there is afurther programme in the same programme series as the selected programme“Horizon”, a display 106 is displayed on the screen to inform the userof when that next episode of the Horizon programme series is to be shownas illustrated in FIG. 3. The message indicates that the next episode112 is to be shown four times 114, 116, 118, 120 every day for the nextweek. The user then selects a reminder for one of the showings 116 sothat they are informed of when the selected showing is due to start.

[0037] Thus the present invention allows the user to more easily plantheir viewing for a particular time period without having to consultother television listings/schedules. The user can then use otherfeatures of the EPG or television system to set reminders, add theepisode to a favourites schedule and/or the like.

1. A television system including a broadcast data receiver (BDR) forreceiving broadcast digital data in the form of audio, video and/orauxiliary data from a remote broadcaster and processing said data toallow video and/or text to be selectively viewed on a display screenconnected to the BDR, said video and text which can be selected,including details of programmes available for selection by a viewer andcharacterised in that when a programme which is selected for viewing ispart of a series of programmes, at a pre-determined time point during orat the end of the selected programme, an indication is generated by theBDR to inform the viewer of the details of the scheduled display of thenext episode of the said series of programmes.
 2. A television systemaccording to claim 1 characterised in that the indication of when thenext episode is being shown is based on information provided in a textdisplay in the display screen.
 3. A television system according to claim1 characterised in that the indication is generated when the BDR detectsthe end of the selected programme and the BDR searches, or has alreadysearched, through EPG data in the BDR to identify the scheduled showingof the next episode of the programme series.
 4. A television systemaccording to claim 1 characterised in that the data relating to thescheduled showing of the next episode of the programme series isbroadcast by the broadcaster in conjunction with the data for theselected programme whereupon an indication is generated in response tothe received data.
 5. A television system according to claim 1characterised in that the indication is typically generated fromauxiliary data broadcast from a broadcaster and used for the generationof the EPG.
 6. A television system according to claim 1 characterised inthat the indication can include any, or any combination, of; the datewhen the next episode is to be shown; the time at which the next episodeis to be shown; the channel on which the next episode is to be shown;and/or a description of the content of the next episode.
 7. A televisionsystem according to claim 1 characterised in that if the next episode isto be repeated a number of times over a time period, the indicationincludes details of all showings of the next episode, in that period. 8.A television system according to claim 1 characterised in that theindication includes details of the showing of the next episode of theprogramme which does not overlap with any other bookmarked programmespreviously selected by the viewer.
 9. A television system according toclaim 1 characterised in that the indication is in the form of a textmessage displayed on the display screen, and overlaid on video datadisplayed at that time.
 10. A television system according to claim 9characterised in that the displayed text is provided on asemi-transparent background
 11. A television system according to claim 1characterised in that display of the indication on the display screen,the viewer has the option of hiding the indication by using anappropriate control key on control means provided.
 12. A televisionsystem according to claim 1 characterised in that the indication is inthe form of an audio message generated by the BDR via speakers connectedthereto.
 13. A television system according to claim 1 characterised inthat the viewer can set a reminder function so that the BDR informs themwhen the next episode is to be shown at a time nearer the scheduledshowing of the next episode.
 14. A television system according to claim1 characterised in that the viewer can recall the indication prior tothe scheduled showing of the episode by depression of a pre-selected keyon control means for the television system.
 15. A television systemaccording to claim 1 characterised in that the indication which isgenerated is displayed for a period of time determined by the userand/or broadcaster.
 16. A television system according to claim 1characterised in that the indication includes information relating towhen a repeat of the selected programme is to be shown.
 17. A method ofindicating to a viewer of the television programme when the scheduledshowing of the next episode or episodes in a series of televisionprogrammes is/are to occur on a television system, said televisionsystem including a BDR for receiving broadcast digital data in the formof audio, video and/or auxiliary data from a remote broadcaster andprocessing said data for viewing on a display screen and/or listeningvia speakers connected to the BDR, characterised in that said methodincludes the steps of the BDR identifying whether a series of programmesexist for a programme selected for viewing on the system, the BDRsearching received data for the next episode in the selected programmeseries and, if an episode is identified the BDR then generates anindication to inform the viewer of when the next episode of theprogramme is to be shown.